Repeating apparatus for clocks and watches



(Model) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 0. JENKINS. REPEATING APPARATUS FOR CLOCKS AND WATGHES. No. 247,651. Patented Sept. 27,1881.

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(ModeL) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2,

0. JENKINS.

. REPEATING APPARATUS FOR CLOCKS. AND WATCHES. No. 247,651.

Patented Sept. 2'7, 1881.

Fig.3 A

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(ModeL) I '0. JENKINS.

REPEATING APPARATUS FOR CLOCKS AND WATGHES. No. 247,651.

Patented Sept. 27, 1881.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OSMORE JENKINS, 0F MELROSE, MASSACHUSETTS.

REPEATING APPARATUS FOR CLOCKS AND WATCHES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 247,651, dated September 27, 1881.

Application filed May 23, 1881. (Model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OSMORE JENKINS, acitizen of the United States,residing at Melrose, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Striking Apparatus for Clocks or Watches; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to spring balance watches or clocks, and is designed to indicate by strokes of a bell the hours and fractions of an hour; and it consists in certain details of mechanism, as hereinafter explained.

The drawings accompanying this specification represent, in Figure 1, a front view of a clock containing my improvements, the outer case and the dial being removed. Fig. 2 represents a rear elevation of the same. Fig. 3 represents a side elevation of the same. Fig. 4 in such drawings is a section through the hands, arbor, and the parts immediately adjacent thereto. Fig. 5 is a section through the mechanism for actuating the hour-hand striker. Fig. 6 is a view of a portion of said mechanism. Fig. 7 is a plan of the minute hand striker and its trip mechanism, and Fig. 8 an end view of the same. Fig. 9 is a view of the ratchet-wheel, the spur'gear, and the pawl of the hour-hand striking mechanism.

In the above-named drawings, Arepresents the body or frame of the clock, the same consisting of a top plate, (1, and upright front and rear plates, Dand E, with cross-bars B B, 850. the usual mainspring, barrel, and train of driving-gears being contained between the plates andtheescapement. Thehands-arborisshown at a, the minute-hand at b, its supporting-sleeve at I), and the hour-hand at c, all the above parts being arranged in manner similar to spring-balance clocks in general.

In carrying my improvements into practice I proceed as follows:

To the sleeve 1) of the minute-hand b, and immediately in front of the front plate, D, of the clock, I secure a flat eccentric or snailshaped plate, d, the periphery of which is divided into a series of steps, 6 e, &c., which are a a 850., similar to those of the snail cl, but

sloping in an opposite direction, as for several reasons I prefer to reverse the relative positions of the two snails and allow them to travel in opposite directions. The snail F serves to determine the extent of movement of the sectoral toothed rack which aetuates the hourhand striker; hence the number of steps of this snail should be twelve, to correspond to the twelve hours of the dial.

In rear of the snail F, I secure to the arbor f a star toothed wheel, G, the concentric range of peripheral teeth of this wheel being twelve in number, and operating with a spring-latch, g and serving to lock the hour-hand snail in position until the expiration of each hour, as hereinafter explained, as I prefer that the advances of the said snail F shall be bya series of sudden impulses from hour to hour rather than by a continuous rotation.

h in the drawings represents a horizontal arbor disposed to one side (the right hand,in' the present instance) of the hands-arbor, and supported in hearings in thetwo plates DE, which it spans, this arbor being connected with one end of a volute spring, 45, placed in rear of the plate D, while the opposite end of such spring is secured to such plate, this spring serving as a motive power to actuatethe mechanism which effects the movements of the strikers.

To the front end of the arbor h, asitprotrudes in front of the plate D, I affix a peripherallytoothed wheel or pinion, j, and in rear of such pinion, and between it and the said plate, I affix to the said arbor a wiper-cam orfinger, k.

the rear plate, E, while I represents a ratchetwheel secured to such arbor h, and operating with a spring-impelled pawl, l, pivoted to the front of the gear H in such manner that as the arbor is rotated in one direction with the intent to wind up its spring the ratchet I slips over the pawl 1 without efl'ect upon the gear H, and upon a reverse rotation of the arbor by the impulse of its spring the ratchetengages the pawl and rotates the said gear by and with the arbor.

To the extreme rear end of the arbor h, in rear of the plate E, I affix a wheel, m, the periphery of which, for about one-half its extent, is connected with a ran gem, of twelve ratchetteeth, 0 o, &c., corresponding to the steps of the hour-hand snail, these teeth operating with a spur or tooth, p, erected upon a hub or sleeve, q, which is mounted loosely upon a horizontal stud, 1', projecting rearward from the plate E, immediately below the mutilated ratchet-wheel m, this tooth 1) being placed so as to intercept some one or more of the teeth of the ratchet during the return or active movement of the latter by the impulse of the spring 2'. A second tooth, 8, depends from the under side of the hub and bears againstalateral pin or tooth, 1, extending forward from the upper part or head of a pendent vibratory bar, a, which is pivoted. at its upper extremity to the rear end of the stud 1', this bar carrying at its lower end a hammer or striker, c, which operates with a volute-spring bell, to, properly secured to the plate E.

A plate-spring, w, is secured at its base to the lower part of the plate E, and with its upper and free end wiping against the side of the tooth sopposite the pin it, whilea second spring, 9 is secured to the plate E, and with its upper end bearing against the periphery of the hub q, these two springs serving to impel the striker '12 toward and against the bell to after each ascent of the striker by a tooth of the ratchet m.

To operate the pinion j to an extent corresponding to the position of the hour-hand snail I I employ a sectoral plate, J, the horizontal body portion a of which is disposed above the said snail, and is pivoted at its base to the left side of the plate D,'as shown at W, while its opposite and vertical portion or head 0 has a rack, d, of peripheral teeth 6 e, 850., which engage the teeth of the said pinion j.

To depress the toothed sector J, and thereby rotate the pinion j and arbor h in a direction to wind up the motor-spring i, I employ a vertical rod or push-pin, f, which plays loosely in a bearin g rearward to the upper part of the plate D, the upper end of this push-pin protruding through the top of the outer case of the clock, and having a thumb-knob, h. The lower end of the push-pin f bears upon the top of the sector J, while depending from such lower end of said pin, in front of the sector, I form a tooth, i, which operates with some one of the steps a of the hourhand snail F. Hence the extent of descent of the push-pin,

and consequent winding up of the spring 5 and rotation of the ratchet m is determined by the distance of such one of the steps a from the pivot of the snail as the tooth i may bein contact with.

The striker of the minutehand is shown at k as secured to the lower end of a vibratory bar, l, which is secured at its upper end to a horizontal arbor, m, that spans the parts of the plates D E and finds bearings therein, the front end of this arbor at having a crank-pin, b protruding through the front of the plate D and bearing against the upper born or spur, n, of a trip-plate, 0, which is pivoted to the plateD, immediately below said arbor, the born or spur n being pressed against the crank-pin by a spring, 19, secured to said plate. The opposite or lower born or spur, '1", of the tripper 0 operates with some one or more of a range, s, of ratchet-teeth t t, &c., out upon the periphery of a second sectoral plate, L, which is disposed in rear of the sector J, and is pivoted at its inner end to the plate D, to one side of the minute-hand snail d, as shown at u. The lower end of the sector L has a lateral tooth, '0', which is kept in contact with the wiper-cam k by a spring, 20, secured to the plate D, and hearing at its free end against the inner end of such sector. As the sectorJislowered by the push-pinf in the act of ascertaining the position of the hour-hand snail, the pinionj is rotated in a direction to wind up the spring i, thereby raising the wiper it, while at the same time the sectorL is raised by the action of its spring to, and a portion of its teeth t pass over and engages the tripper-cam 0.

A vertical curved born or spur, 00, is formed upon the inner end of the sector L, above its pivot u, and the point of this horn when the sector is raised abuts against some one of the steps 6 of such snail, and thereby governs the number of teeth engaged by the tripper 0, and the subsequent corresponding blows of the striker upon its bell or gong, which is shown at y in the drawings.

It will be seen that the position of the hourhand snail F determines the extent of drop of the sector J, and consequently the number of teeth of the ratchet I, upon the arbor it caused by the rotation of such arbor to engage the pawl upon the gear H.

The relative positions of the parts when the mechanism is at rest are as follows, supposing the time to be six minutes past twelve, midnight: In this case the hour-hand is practicall y vertical, while the minute-hand has somewhat passed beyond the one-oclock division of the dial. The last step, 12, ot' the snail 13 (which is the step nearest the pivot of the snail) now stands directly beneath the tooth 2" of the push-pin f, while the minute-hand snail d is in such a position that the horn w of the sector L stands opposite to, but does not touch, the third step, 3, of such snail. The two sectors are in their idle or lowest positions, the motorspring "5 is run down, and the tooth of the Mass i a ratchet-wheel m first in advance of the spur p of the hub q stands in such a position relatively to such spur that, as the sector J is lowered by the descent of the push-pin until the spur t" of such pin abuts against the step 1 of the snail F, the said'tooth of the ratchet-wheel m engages or passes beyond the spur p.

As the minute-hand snail'd is divided into twelve steps, each stroke of its striker repre sents a passage of five minutes past the hour, and but twelve steps on this snail are necessary, as said minute-hand striker has to record but fifty-five minutes to the full twelve hours of the hour-hand striker.

To ascertain the time in the dark by this clock it is only necessary to depress the pushpin f (supposing, as before premised, the time to be six minutes past twelve, midnight) until its tooth 'i brings up against the step 12 of the hour-hand snail F, and leave it in this position, the result being that upon the depression of the push-pin the sector J is lowered by the direct action of such pin, and through the agency of the pinion j, arbor h, with its ratchet-wheel I, and the spur-gear H, with its pawl Z, winds up the spring 6 and rotates the ratchet-wheel m until all the teeth of the latter engage or pass by the spurfp of the hub q, while simultaneous with the depression of the sector J the cam it rises by and with the rotation of the pinion, and permits the spring w to elevate the sector L until the horn w ofsuch sector brings up against the step 3 of the minutehand snail d, and one tooth t of such sector has passed beyond and engaged the spur r of the tripper 0. The adjustment of the two sectors with respect to the two snails and the arbor h, the pinion j, and the cam 70 are such that upon the depression of the sector J the said cam is rises to such an extent as to permit of an elevation of the sector L through such a distance that all its teeth 15 may, if necessary, pass beyond and engage the tripper 0, in order that the full fifty-five minutes may be struck by the min ute-hand striker in whatever position the hour-hand snail may be. As soon as the pressure upon the pin f is removed the power of the contracted spring ioperates to rotate the arbor it, thereby rotating the pinion j and restoring the sector J to its normal or idle position, and at the same time rotating the ratchet-wheel m, and through the medium of its entire range of teeth acting in succession upon the spur p of the hub q, and by the latter upon the head of the striker-bar to effects twelve blows of the striker 1; upon the bell to, thus plainly indicating the time in hours. As the sector J completes its ascent, the cam is wipes against the tooth o of the sector L and lowers such sector L, the result being that the last tooth of the latter passes by and trips the plate 0, and such plate, through the agency of the arbor m and its crank-pin b ,efl"ects one blow of the striker upon the hell 3 thus in dicating the time by minutes within four minutes of the true time-that is, between five and ten minutes past the hour.

To insure certainty of operation of the minute-hand snail d, I employ an independent or auxiliary sectoral plate or pallet, (shown at a in Figs. 1 and 4 of the drawings as disposed in front of the snail d and pivoted at its head loosely to the minute-hand sleeve,) this plate or pallet a when the minute-hand is between the twelve and one oclock divisions of the dial, dropping to such a point that a portion of its periphery-as at b, for instance-extends beyond or below the highest pointof the minutehand snail d, and provides a stop to the horn 00 of the sector L, to prevent too great an elevation of the latter in such rare instances as the point of the snail may not drop low enough to intercept such horn. The pallet a is susceptible of a slight rocking motion upon the minute-hand sleeve, and with respect to the snail d, and the limit of this play is governed by a concentric slot in the snail, which receives a pin from the rear side of the pallet.

It is essential that the pallet a shall drop and cover the point of the snail d before the minute-hand passes the twelve-oclock division of the dial, and to compel this dropping of the pallet at such time I employ a stud, (shown at c in Fig. 1 of the drawings,) which projects laterallyfrom the front of such pallet and opcrates with the teeth of the star-wheel G. As the minute-hand immediately approaches the twelve-oclock division of the dial, the tooth c wipes against and passes by the next preceding tooth of the wheel Gr, and thereby partially advances the hour-hand snail one stepthat is, one hour-while, as the said tooth 0 passes by and leaves said tooth of the wheel G, the advance of such wheel is completed with a sudden throw by the action of the spring-latch g and this sudden termination of the advance or said wheel G causes its tooth next in rear of the tooth c of the pallet to abut, with aquick blow, upon or against the rear side of such tooth c and cause the pallet to drop and cover the point of the snail and intercept the horn m of the sector L, as shown in Fig. 1 of the draw ings. In order that the next succeeding tooth ot' the star-wheel may act upon the rear side of the pallet-tooth c to give a fillip to the latter, as explained, the said tooth should be oval or oblong in cross'section, as shown; or, in place of such a tooth, two pins may be employed. It will be seen that the stud c operates to effect a one-step advance of the snail F with each complete revolution of the minute-hand-that is, during the passage of an hour of time; and that the hour-hand is not changed to indicate the next succeeding hour until the min u te-hand passes the twelve-oclock division of the dial.

The arbor m has a torsional spring, n,combined with it and the plate E in such manner as to tend to rotate it (the arbor) against the stress of the spring 19, as shown by the arrow in Fig. 8 of the drawings.

A proper train of gears and pinions, a b c d 6 and a balance-wheel, f is to be employed in connection with the arbor h and pinion H.

To adapt my mechanism to indicate quarter .IOO

hours instead of five minutes, as explained, it is only necessary to divide the minute-hand snail (1 into four steps anti reduce the number of teeth upon the periphery of the sector L to three. In this case I propose to employ but one hell and make the impelling-power ot' the hour-hand striker more powerful than that of the minute-hand striker, the difference in vol ume and of sound being sufficient to discriminate between the strokes of the two hands.

I claim 1. The sector L, provided with alarm -actnating teeth t, lateral tooth o, and horns 00 00 in combination with spring to, which throws teeth i into engagement with the min ate-alarm mechanism, shaft h, and its wiper L, which act on tooth Q) to cause the sounding of said alarm, and snail-cam (l and its pawl 0 which co-operate with horns m w as stated, to regulate the motion of said sector L and the number of strokes sounded by the alarm, substantially as set forth.

2. The push'pinf, pivoted toothed sector J, and pinion j, engaged and turned thereby, in combination with the spring-rotated arbor h, carrying said pinion, the sector J, which operates the minute-alarm and is provided with lateral toothv and horns 1E 90 the spring to,

which throws said sector into engagement with the alarm mechanism, and the wiper it, which is carried by arbor h and acts on tooth o to cause the sounding of the alarm.

3. In combination with the hour-hand snail and the sector J, the arbor It, with ratchet I, pinion j, spring 2, spur-gear H, with its pawl Z, and the mutilated ratchet-wheel m, the whole constituting mechanism to actuate the hub which connects with the suspensory of the hour-hand striker, substantially as hereinbefore described.

4. In combination with the hour-hand snail and the sector J, the arbor 7L, with its ratchet 1', pinion j, spring 1;, spur-gear H, with its pawl l, mutilated ratchetwheel m, hub q, with its spurs or teeth 1) 3, bar u, with its pin 1, and the striker 11, substantially as set forth.

5. In combination with the arbor h, pinionj, and cam 7. the sector L, with its tooth t, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I ati ix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

OSMORE JENKINS.

Witnesses:

H. E. LODGE, F. G. SrMPsoN. 

